Right in Front of Me
by Heart Full of Elves
Summary: Titanic AU inspired by an amazing book called The Watch That Ends the Night by Allan Wolf. The line "I will go down with this ship" has never been more accurate. Thanks to VioletBaudelaire07 for being my beta and helping me make it better!


They had served together on various ships for a few years now, and were delighted to be given the honour to work on the biggest ship in the world, working under the revered Captain EJ Smith. As fifth and sixth officers they were not exactly high ranking, but they were so excited to sail on such a majestic vessel that they didn't even care. She was the ship of dreams for not only the passengers but the crew as well, and Archie Kennedy and Horatio Hornblower were no exception.

The first few days were the busiest. They were kept running all over the ship, making sure that everything was in perfect shape – one could almost say _shipshape_, thought Archie at one stage. It was difficult to be active after five hours of sleep each morning, but they managed. They had no choice, and besides, they knew from experience that before long things would settle down and they would get another hour of sleep each night.

On the fourth night of their sailing – the fourteenth of April 1912 - both boys got off duty early. Some of the first class passengers were having a party to celebrate some socialite or another's birthday and the junior officers weren't needed for anything. Archie sat in a chair on the boat deck, specifically on the Officers' Promenade, gazing out to sea. A cold wind blew, making him shiver. His thin officer's jacket was no match for the Atlantic breeze.

"It's a bit chilly, don't you think?" a voice interrupted his peace of mind.

Archie looked up. "Hornblower," he greeted with a smile. "I could really use a blanket and a hot cup of tea out here," he agreed.

Horatio flopped down in the seat next to him. He cocked his ear to one side, listening to something. "That music," he said, "it's almost like it's written especially for us." When Archie frowned, he explained that he could hear the music from the Jacobean Room, where the first class passengers were having their celebration.

"You big softie," grinned Archie, throwing a punch at his friend's arm. After a moment a violin's music grew louder and he could hear it too.

Horatio stood up and reached out a hand. "May I have this dance?" He was joking but also serious at the same time, something unusual for the normally sombre young man.

Archie took the hand and pulled himself to his feet. "You may."

At arm's length apart, they danced, Horatio humming along with the music. "Isn't it beautiful?" he sighed when there was a break in the music. He released Archie and looked up to the night sky. "Look how bright the stars are. I wonder if someday mankind will be able to travel to the stars."

"Maybe somed-aaaay!" The end of Archie's wistful reply turned into a cry because at that moment Archie slipped on the ice that covered parts of the deck. He flailed as he tried to find his balance, and would have landed painfully on his back if Horatio's arms hadn't shot out to catch him, bringing the two chest to chest.

Archie breathed heavily, either because of the near heart attack he had just had in the split second before Horatio caught him, or because of their closeness. They had never been this close before, close enough to kiss. Before tonight they had just been friends. Their mixed breaths were visible in the freezing air, curling like smoke, a reminder of just how close they were standing. They stared into each other's eyes, unable to look away. Horatio's widened at the same time as Archie's.

_No_, thought Horatio. But another part of him said, _Yes_. This was what he had been looking for. This beautiful blue-eyed boy who had been by his side for so long was what made his heart beat. And he had never realised it before.

"I -" Archie started to something, but Horatio cut him off by lowering his head and pressing his lips to his.

The kiss was perfect, like it was all meant to be. How could they have gone for so long without noticing their special bond? It was unthinkable that they had never noticed how close they really were.

Horatio pulled back so that their cheeks were touching. "Archie," he whispered his best friend's name, but it sounded different to every other time he had said it. This time the way it rolled off his tongue made it sound like a caress.

"Horatio?" Archie knew that something important was happening, something important was about to be said. His eyes closed, enjoying the sensation of smooth skin against skin.

"This is ridiculous, but I must say it anyway," Horatio said, and chuckled. Archie felt his body rumble with the laugh. It was a nice feeling, to be held in the arms of someone you – "I love you, Archie. I don't know how I've been so blind to not see what was right in front of me, but there you go. I love you," he repeated.

He felt Archie's lips curve against his cheek. A smile. "I love you in return," sighed Archie. "More than I've loved anyone in my life, except perhaps my mother." He giggled a bitat that. "We've both been blind. You were here all along, by my side the entire time, and I only just realised it."

Horatio sighed, and shook his head. "I would say that we have wasted time, only we have the rest of this voyage, and all the crossings after that. And as officers who spend so much time at sea and so little at port, we are not even expected to marry."

"You are more beautiful than any woman I've ever known," Archie stated boldly, a grin in his voice.

"No, you're more beautiful."

"No, you are."

"No, _you_ are."

They went on like that for some time, and after they had settled that Archie was more beautiful after all, they kissed again, a slow, deep, passionate kiss that they would remember for the rest of their lives.

"Should we head inside? You're shivering," Horatio observed.

"Yeah," Archie nodded. With great reluctance, he let go of Horatio and they stepped inside, where the officers' quarters were, and walked shoulder to shoulder down the corridor to Horatio's cabin. Archie scanned the hallway briefly before stepping inside after his friend. The door slammed behind him.

They fell down on the bunk, tearing off clothes in a frenzied passion. Horatio got into bed, holding up the covers so Archie could get in too, and they looked at each other, wondering what next. A blush rose in Horatio's cheeks as his eyes travelled across the other man's naked body. "Um."

Archie blushed under the gaze and said an awkward, "So…" His heart beat in a strange rhythm. Neither was sure what exactly it was they were supposed to do.

Then Horatio remembered something he once came across in a book. "I have an idea," he murmured. His smile and twinkling eyes hinted at something evil.

A second later, Archie felt a hand close around his cock. His blue eyes widened as he met Horatio's dark ones, and he knew that this felt right. "It's a start," he said, underestimating the power that Horatio's hand would soon have on him.

Not half an hour after saying that, he felt as if he were flying as their orgasms took them both over the edge. _This_ was how it was done, he realised with a wonderful mixture of pleasure and satisfaction. It was like magic.

When they were spent, they lay side by side, staring at the ceiling of the cabin. Under the blankets, they kissed once more, Archie whispering terms of endearment and Horatio tracing lines on Archie's chest. "I hope no-one heard," said Horatio, feeling self-conscious. He'd cried out pretty loudly, and now hoped that their activities had gone unnoticed.

"Hmm," Archie agreed. He turned to look at his lover lying next to him, panting and with pink cheeks.

"It's hot in here," Horatio said when Archie commented on the sweat on his face.

Archie grinned. "And it's about to get even hotter," he promised, sliding a hand down Horatio's torso.

They settled down to sleep afterwards, exhausted from all the exercise. Horatio draped his arm around Archie before closing his eyes and allowing himself a smile as sleep pulled him under its heavy cloak.

There was no time for dreams and it felt like he had only just gone to sleep when he was woken by shouts coming from along the hallway. He sat up with a start and gave the man beside him a gentle shake. "Get up," he said, doing so himself. "Something's wrong."

The two threw on their clothes and hurried out of the cabin, fully alert. They joined the other four officers and waited for instructions. Horatio frowned, trying to work out why he felt as if something were not quite right. Archie worked it out first.

"The engines have stopped."

Horatio met his eyes with unease. If the engines were stopped, something had to be seriously wrong. He shivered into his jacket, dread slipping its cold tendrils around his heart. "Don't mock me for saying it, but I have a bad feeling about this."

The other officers agreed. Some had heard the collision with their own ears, and they explained that the ship had been struck on her starboard side by an iceberg. "We're taking on water, and fast."

Horatio gulped. There was never a good time and place for a ship to sink, but in the middle of the night in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean had to be the worst. The junior officers were told to put on their lifejackets and help the stewards get the passengers to put on theirs, so off they went, using their powers of persuasion to force the first class to put on the bulky things. It took some time, and Archie and Horatio ran back to their post when the task was done, and then they were told to help prepare the lifeboats. They had reassured the passengers that everything was fine, that they were only taking precaution, but the officers knew the truth.

_Titanic_ was going to go down.

Horatio and Archie worked with their fellow crewmembers to get the boats ready for the passengers to get in and row. Only women and children were allowed on at first, which led to many disagreements and raised voices once all the reluctant ones had got in the boats. Passengers pushed and shoved, making sure that they got in. By now it was clear that this was no drill, not just a precaution. This was a matter of survival.

Horatio used his strength to help passengers into the boats and help lower them down the side of the ship, putting all his attention on the safety of the passengers and none for himself. He barely noticed when the last lifeboat was lowered into the water, fixed instead on keeping his balance as the deck slanted. A mass of third class passengers rushed forwards, shouting in their different languages. He shouted back, telling them to wait.

Archie came and stood next to him, murmuring in his ear, "There are no more boats."

Horatio froze, that realisation making him colder than the night air did. He swallowed. This was a disaster. They had launched many of the lifeboats with fewer passengers than they could hold in their hurry to get them safe, but in their hurry they had not accounted for the other passengers: the passengers left behind.

The passengers who would not leave the ship in safety.

Everyone left was going to go into the water, whether they could swim and make it to one of the lifeboats or not.

By this time, the whole crew was in a state of disorder, having not been trained in evacuation procedures. Captain Smith was at the bridge, and Horatio knew that he would not see him again. The captain would go down with the ship. Some of the other officers had managed to get in the lifeboats, but he didn't know if they were being selfish in saving their own lives, or selfless in using their strength and leadership to save others.

It was fortunate that Horatio and Archie were near the bow of the ship when without warning, the forward deck dipped underwater and the ship's stern rose out of the water, causing everyone to grab at railings and hold on for dear life. If there had been any doubts before, now there were none.

_Titanic_ was sinking.

Horatio's eyes flicked to his companion out of concern as Archie screamed in pain from an unknown source, but he was unable to do anything. He couldn't move. He took a deep breath and flung his arm around Archie, then used all his strength to swing the two of them across the deck. They scrambled to the door that led to the officers' quarters, knowing now that there was no hope of survival but that at least they could die without their ears being assaulted by all the screams. They could die in comfort.

Horatio leaned against the wall of his room, unable to stand upright, what with the current angle of the floor. He reached out for Archie, who stumbled across the room and threw himself into Horatio's arms. Arms wrapped around bodies in a final desperate embrace. They held each other so tight that neither could breathe with ease, giving and taking comfort at the same time.

"I love you," was Archie's whisper.

"I know," replied Horatio. "And I'm never going to let you go."

It was the last promise he ever made. Archie's lips sought his, and they kissed with the same fiery passion as they had earlier that night, pouring all their love into the kiss. They did not break the kiss. They did not let each other go. Even when the water broke through the walls of the cabin, rushing towards them at deadly speed and taking over, they did not see it.

They saw only what was right in front of them.


End file.
